Needles Municipal Code Art. 16 VI Litter Control

16-35 Definitions 16-36 Pedestrians And Motorists 16-37 Vehicles Transporting Loose Materials 16-38 Loading And Unloading Operations 16-39 Construction/Demolition Projects 16-40 Household Solid Waste Containerization And Removal 16-41 Commercial Solid Waste Containerization And Removal 16-42 Provisions For Solid Waste Disposal And Storage Facilities At New Buildings 16-43 Keeping Property Clean 16-44 Enforcement Authorizations 16-45 Penalties 16-46 Severability 16-47 Regulations Not Exclusive

16-35 Definitions

For the purposes of this article certain terms are defined as follows:

1. “Containers” means locally-approved metal or plastic receptacles used for the disposal and storage of solid waste.
2. “Litter” means any quantity of noncontainerized paper, metal, plastic, glass or miscellaneous solid waste which may be classed as trash, debris, rubbish, refuse, garbage or junk.
3. “Private property” includes, but is not limited to, the following exterior locations owned by private individuals, firms, corporations, institutions or organizations: yards, grounds, driveways, entranceways, passageways, parking areas, working areas, storage areas, vacant lots and recreation facilities.
4. “Public property” includes, but is not limited to, the following exterior locations: streets, street medians, roads, road medians, catchbasins, sidewalks, strips between streets and sidewalks, lanes, alleys, public rights-of-way, public parking lots, school grounds, municipal housing project grounds, municipal vacant lots, parks, beaches, playgrounds, other publicly-owned recreation facilities, and municipal waterways and bodies of water.
5. “Commercial handbill” means any printed or written matter, any sample or device, dodger, circular, leaflet, pamphlet, paper, booklet or any other printed or otherwise reproduced original copy of any matter or literature: 1. Which advertises for sale any merchandise, product, commodity or thing;

2. Which directs attention to any business or mercantile or commercial establishment or other activity for the purpose of either directly or indirectly promoting the interest thereof by sales; 3. Which directs attention to or advertises any meeting, theatrical performance, exhibition or event of any kind for gain or profit; or 4. Which, while containing reading matter other than advertising matter, is predominantly and essentially an advertisement and is distributed or circulated for advertising purposes or for the private benefits and gain of any person so engaged as advertiser or distributor.
   6. “Noncommercial handbill” means any printed or written matter, any sample or device, dodger, circular, leaflet, pamphlet, newspaper, magazine, paper booklet or any other printed or otherwise reproduced original or copy of any matter or literature not included in the definitions of a commercial handbill as set forth in this section.
   7. “Person” means any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company or organization of any kind.
   8. “Vehicle” means every device upon or by which any person shall, or property is, or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, including devices used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks. (Ord. 220-AC)

16-36 Pedestrians And Motorists

1. It is unlawful for any person to throw, discard, place or deposit litter in any manner or amount on any public or private property within the limits of the city except in containers or areas lawfully provided therefor.
2. In the prosecution charging a violation of subsection (a) of this section from a motor vehicle, proof that the particular vehicle described in the complaint was origin of the litter, together with proof that the defendant named in the complaint was at the time of such violation the registered owner of such vehicle, shall constitute in evidence a presumption that the registered owner was the person who committed the violation.
3. No person shall throw, distribute, deposit, place or attach or in any other way leave any handbill, circular, newspaper, paper, booklet, poster or any other printed matter on private property after notice from the owner or occupant of the private property to cease and desist from such activity. (Ord. 220-AC)

16-37 Vehicles Transporting Loose Materials

1. It is unlawful for any person, firm, corporation, institution or organization to transport any loose cargo by truck or other motor vehicle within the corporate limits of the city unless such cargo is covered and secured in such manner as to prevent depositing of litter on public and private property.
   2. The duty and responsibility imposed by subsection (a) of this section shall be applicable alike to the owner of the truck or other vehicle, the operator thereof, and the person, firm, corporation, institution or organization from whose residence or establishment the cargo originated.
   3. In the prosecution charging a violation of subsection (a) of this section, lack of adequate covering and securing shall in itself constitute proof a violation has been committed. (Ord. 220-AC)

16-38 Loading And Unloading Operations

1. Any owner or occupant of an establishment or institution at which litter is attendant to the packing and unpacking and loading and unloading of materials at exterior locations shall provide suitable containers at that location for the disposal and storage of such litter and shall make appropriate arrangements for the collection thereof.
2. Further, it shall be the duty of the owner or occupant to remove at the end of each working day any litter that has not been containerized at these locations. (Ord. 220-AC)

16-39 Construction/Demolition Projects

1. It is unlawful for the owner, agent or contractor in charge of any construction or demolition site to cause, maintain, permit or allow to be caused, maintained or permitted the accumulation of any litter on the site before, during or after completion of the construction or demolition project.
2. It shall be the duty of the owner, agent or contractor to have on the site adequate containers for the disposal of litter and to make appropriate arrangements for the collection thereof or for transport by himself to any authorized facility for final disposition.
3. The owner, agent or contractor may be required at any time to show proof of appropriate collection, or if transported by himself, of final disposition at an authorized facility. (Ord. 220-AC)

16-40 Household Solid Waste Containerization And Removal

1. All residences located in any area in which collection is made by the city or approved contractors shall have sufficient container capacity to accommodate their normal volume of solid waste between collections.
   2. All items too large to fit into containers, such as, but not limited to, appliances, furniture or mattresses, shall be disposed of by self-transport of such items to end disposal facilities or arrangements made for the disposal of same.
   3. All loose materials which normally fit into containers but which are excess as a result of special circumstances such as holidays shall be bundled and tied securely to prevent them from blowing or scattering and the party shall arrange for the disposal of same.
   4. Containers shall be kept covered at all times.
   5. Any container which does not conform to prescribed standards or which has defects likely to hamper collection or injure the person collecting the contents thereof or the public generally shall be replaced promptly by the owner or user of the container upon receipt of written notice of such defects from the department in charge of solid waste management. Failure to do so within five days of such notification shall constitute a violation of this section.
   6. In placing containers for collection and removing them after collection, all residents shall follow those practices in Chapter 16 of this code.
   7. It is unlawful for any resident to deposit household solid waste in any receptacle maintained on a sidewalk or at any other location for disposal of litter by pedestrians. (Ord. 220-AC)

16-41 Commercial Solid Waste Containerization And Removal

1. All establishments and institutions which generate solid waste for collection by the city or approved contractors shall abide by the container requirements prescribed in Chapter 16 of this code.
   2. Containers shall be kept covered at all times.
   3. Any container which does not conform to prescribed standards or which has defects likely to hamper collection or injure the person collecting the contents thereof or the public generally shall be replaced promptly by the owner or user of the container upon receipt of written notice of such defects from the department in charge of solid waste management. Failure to do so within five days of such notification shall constitute a violation of this section.
   4. It is unlawful for any owner, manager or employee of a commercial establishment or institution to deposit solid waste from that establishment or institution in any receptacle maintained on a sidewalk or at any other location for disposal of litter by pedestrians. (Ord. 220-AC)

16-42 Provisions For Solid Waste Disposal And Storage Facilities At New Buildings

1. Before building permits shall be issued for construction of commercial buildings and multiple-dwelling units, plans for the adequacy, location and accessibility of solid waste containerization and storage facilities must be approved by the department of public works and/or the department of building and safety.
   2. No certificate of occupancy shall be issued for such premises until the department’s approval of these facilities has been obtained. (Ord. 220-AC)

16-43 Keeping Property Clean

1. It shall be the duty of the owner, agent, occupant or lessee to keep exterior private property free of litter. This requirement applies not only to removal of loose litter, but to materials that already are, or become, trapped at such locations as fence and wall bases, grassy and planted areas, borders, embankments and other lodging points.

   2. Owner, agents, occupants or lessees whose properties face on municipal sidewalks and strips between streets and sidewalks shall be responsible for keeping those sidewalks and strips free of litter.

   3. It is unlawful to sweep or push litter from sidewalks and strips into streets. Sidewalk and strip sweepings must be picked up and put into household or commercial solid waste containers.

   4. It shall be the duty of every nonresident owner of a vacant lot or other vacant property to appoint a resident agent who shall have responsibility for keeping that lot or other property free of litter.

   5. If after due warning, citation or summons, an owner, agent, occupant or lessee fails to remove litter from any private property, the department in charge of solid waste management is authorized to serve written notice to the owner or his appointed agent that if the condition is not corrected within five days, the property will be cleaned by the city and the owner or his appointed agent billed for the cost thereof. If the bill is not paid within thirty days, execution may be issued by the city against the property for the amount of the cleaning charge, and such execution shall constitute a lien on the property until the claim is satisfied.

   6. Notices. 1. Notices to Remove. The city building inspector and director of public works are authorized and empowered to notify the owner, his agent or person in control of any private premises within the city to dispose of litter on such premises or upon the public places abutting or adjacent to such premises. Such notice shall be given by posting private premises and by certified mail addressed to such owner, his agent or such other person at his last known address or by personal service on the owner, agent, person in control or occupant of such property. 2. Contents of Notices. The notice shall describe the work to be done and shall state that if the work is not commenced within five days after the receipt of the notice and diligently prosecuted to completion without interruption, the director of public works shall dispose of the litter, and the cost thereof shall be a lien on the property. The notice shall be substantially in the following form:

      NOTICE TO REMOVE LITTER

      The owner of the property described as follows:

______________________________________________________ commonly known as _______________________________ is hereby ordered to properly dispose of litter located on said property, to wit, _______________________________________________________________________________________________ within five (5) days from the date hereof. If the disposal of the litter herein indicated is not commenced and diligently prosecuted to completion within the time fixed herein, the Director of Public Works or the Building Inspector of the City of Needles shall cause such disposal to be done, and the cost thereof, including any incidental expenses, will be made a lien upon said property pursuant to the provisions of Sec. 16-43 E, of Chapter 16, of the Needles City Code.

Estimated Cost of Disposal:

$ ______________________________

Dated: __________________________

(Ord. 220-AC)

16-44 Enforcement Authorizations

1. Designated personnel in the following two departments are authorized to enforce sections of this chapter as prescribed below:

1. Police Department. Regular officers are empowered to enforce any regulation of which violation may be observed in the normal course of patrol duty. Member of units assigned to special parking details in downtown or other commercial areas (patrolmen, meter maids) have authority to enforce, in their normal course of duty, violations of the following sections: 16-36A Littering by pedestrians and motorists; 16-36D Littering with handbills, leaflets, etc.; 16-37A Transporting loose materials without adequate covering; 16-38A Lack of containers at loading/unloading operations; 16-38B Failure to clean loading/unloading area; 16-41A Improper commercial solid waste containerization; 16-41D Depositing commercial solid waste in sidewalk or other pedestrian litter receptacles; 16-43A Litter on private premises; 16-43B Litter on sidewalks and strips; 16-43C Sweepouts. 2. Public Works/Sanitation Department and Department of Environmental Health Services. Since these departments are the ones most directly concerned with litter control, its directors are authorized to delegate enforcement authority to such officers and/or inspectors within the department as he deems appropriate. Such authority is applicable to the entire chapter excepting sections 16-36 and 16-37.
   2. In pursuance of their normal work, inspectors in the following departments and agencies are authorized to enforce the following sections: 1. Building and safety department: 16-39 Litter control at construction/demolition projects and appropriate collection/disposal; 16-42 Approval of solid waste disposal and storage facilities at new buildings. 2. Fire department:

16-40 Wherever violations of household solid waste containerization regulations constitute existing or potential fire hazards; 16-41 Wherever a similar situation prevails with regard to commercial solid waste containerization regulations; 16-43 Wherever violations of clean-property regulations constitute existing or potential fire hazards. 3. Environmental health services:

16-40 Wherever violations of household solid waste containerization constitute existing or potential health hazards. 16-41 Wherever a similar situation prevails with regard to commercial solid waste containerization regulations; 16-43 Wherever violations of clean-property regulations constitute existing or potential health hazards. 4. Housing authority:

16-40 Where there are violations of household solid waste containerization regulations at city owned housing projects; 16-43 Where there are violations of clean-property regulations at the above projects.

3. Further, along with their regular duties, patrol personnel of the parks and recreation department are authorized to enforce the following sections at parks, beaches and other recreation facilities over which the department has jurisdiction:

16-36A Littering by pedestrians; 16-36C Littering with handbills, leaflets, etc. 4. Code Enforcement Officer. The code enforcement officer, and his or her deputies, are authorized to enforce all sections of this chapter. (Ord. 220-AC; Ord. 335-AC)

16-45 Penalties

1. The schedule of penalties for violations of this chapter shall be as follows:

SECTION VIOLATIONS AMOUNT

16-36A Littering by pedestrians and motorists $20.00
Dumpouts 300.00

16-36D Littering with handbills, leaflets, etc. 35.00

16-36E Failure to provide litter receptacles 50.00

16-37A Transporting loose materials without adequate covering 100.00

16-38A Lack of containers at loading/unloading operations 25.00

16-38B Failure to clean loading/unloading areas 50.00

16-39A Accumulations of litter at construction/demolition sites 100.00

16-39B Lack of containers at construction/demolition sites 100.00

16-39C Inability to show proof of proper end disposition of construction/demolition 100.00

16-40A Improper household solid waste containerization 20.00

16-40B Improper disposal of household bulk 50.00

16-40C Failure to bundle and tie loose excess household solid waste 20.00

16-40D Uncovered household containers 10.00

16-40E Failure to replace defective household containers 25.00

16-40F Failure to follow prescribed putout practices 25.00

16-40G Depositing household solid waste in sidewalk or other pedestrian litter receptacles 25.00

16-41A Improper commercial solid waste containerization 50.00

16-41B Uncovered commercial containers 25.00

16-41C Failure to replace defective commercial containers 50.00

16-41D Depositing commercial solid waste in sidewalk or other pedestrian receptacles 50.00

16-43A Litter on private premises 50.00

16-43B Litter on sidewalks and strips 25.00

16-43C Sweepouts 35.00

2. Each and every day during which a stationary violation continues, except in cases in which a given time has been allowed for corrective action to
be taken, shall be a separate and distinct offense. (Ord. 220-AC)

16-46 Severability

If any provision of this chapter, or any section thereof, in any circumstances is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of the chapter and of the application of any of the other provisions or sections shall be not affected.

16-47 Regulations Not Exclusive

The regulations contained in this chapter do not supersede or preclude the enforcement of any other regulations contained in this code which are applicable to any conduct regulated hereby.